The sizzle from cast-iron cookware over charcoal and flames gave way to the clang of a triangle at an Old West chow time Thursday afternoon.

“Come and get it!” hollered Les Mergelman of Cedaredge, just as chuck wagon stewards did countless times on the historic cattle drives that moved 10 million head of cattle across the American West.

Chuck wagons staffed by local celebrities fed fans, volunteers and celebrities at the National Western Stock Show — succulent briskets the size of basketballs topped with goat cheese and dill, beans, biscuits, potatoes, fine deserts, rich “cowboy coffee” by the gallon, as well as a tasty concoction Mergelman called “Helton stew.”

Todd Helton, the Colorado Rockies’ all-star first-baseman, ate his namesake stew from a plastic cup as he greeted fans of baseball and the Old West alike.

The chuck wagons will be back in the stockyards from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. today and Saturday, with cooks dispensing history, campfire cooking advice and the occasional sample.

As hundreds shuffled by during an afternoon feeding, five friends from Parker and Kiowa were in hog heaven as they toiled with the precision of heart surgeons.

“It’s kind of a hobby,” said Kevin Hall of Kiowa, dressed in 19th-century Western attire and sporting a handlebar mustache. “We love to cook, and we like the history. It’s a lot of both.”

Their hobby grew into a joint adventure when his friend Mark Moore outfitted an old wagon he bought as a replica of the Studebaker wagons that crisscrossed the West on cattle drives after the Civil War into the 1880s, when they were replaced by trains.

They get together at one another’s homes to cook a half-dozen times a year and occasionally cater weddings and other events, he said.

Another friend, Lloyd Britton of Kiowa, beckoned eaters to their wagon with corny jokes.

“I’ve got a mother-in-law horse I’m trying to get rid of,” he called to the crowd. “Don’t y’all know what a mother-in-law horse is? It’s a horse you put your mother-in-law on and hope neither one comes back.”

The men who manned chuck wagons in their golden era were generally too old or broken-down to drive the herd but earned a good living in a vital role, according to the Museum of the American West, explained the businessmen and gentleman ranchers playing the roles Thursday.

Cattle-drive cooks usually got nicknames such as Cookie, Mother, Dough Puncher and Grubby from the cowhands.

The chuck wagons have been fixtures at county and state fairs across the West but were making their first appearance in recent memory at the National Western. Delighted stock show president and chief executive Pat Grant said he hoped it would become a tradition because of the mix of family fun, education and history.

“It’s great for kids to see for themselves what it was like,” said Amber Dyson, as her three children, ages 4, 6 and 7, gobbled up spicy chili and cornbread.

Joey Bunch has been a reporter for 28 years, including the last 12 at The Denver Post. For various newspapers he has covered the environment, water issues, politics, civil rights, sports and the casino industry. He likes stories more than reports. Tell him if you know one.

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